Tropical Storm Sonia Slows as it Hits Mexico

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Monday that Tropical Storm Sonia has been downgraded to a tropical depression as it hit land in Mexico.

The center in Miami said the center of Sonia reached the coast of Sinaloa near the city of El Dorado early on Monday.

Its maximum sustained winds have decreased to near 35 mph (55 kph), and it will likely dissipate later Monday over Mexico's mountainous terrain.

Even though Sonia is weakening, heavy rains are still possible in Sinaloa, western Durango and southern Chihuahua, the center said.

The government of Sinaloa state said classes were canceled for Monday in five municipalities that could be affected by the storm. Sixty shelters were being opened in case anyone had to evacuate their homes.

In the resort town of Los Cabos in Baja California, officials opened a shelter for possible evacuees and said the port had been closed to small craft.

The hurricane center said the storm could produce up to 6 inches (about 15 centimeters) of rainfall in Sinaloa and Durango states, with isolated areas getting as much as 10 inches (25 centimeters).

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